[Type text]

UNIVERSITY OF MALTA
Faculty of Engineering
Department of Materials Engineering

FIRST YEAR PROJECT

Uses of Steel

Lecturer: Ing. Ann ammit
10th May, 2013
By Group 12:
Jennifer Attard 088194 (M)
Jean-Paul Formosa 006695 (M)
Graham Gilson 171293 (M)
Roberto Migneco 323394 (M)
Jocelyn Aquilina 052594 (M)
Maria Cutajar 102294 (M)

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Table of Contents
Part 1: General Information ................................................................................................................ 2
Steel and its Properties.................................................................................................................... 2
Production of Steel ......................................................................................................................... 3
Heat Treatment of Steel .................................................................................................................. 5
Annealing .................................................................................................................................... 5
Normalizing ................................................................................................................................ 5
Quenching ................................................................................................................................... 6
Recyclability of Steel ...................................................................................................................... 6
Typical Uses of Steel ...................................................................................................................... 8
Part 2: The Drill Bit ............................................................................................................................ 9
The Drill Bit and its Function ......................................................................................................... 9
Required Properties of the Drill Bit .............................................................................................. 10
Why is the Drill Bit made of Steel? Advantages and Disadvantages ........................................... 10
Typical Chemical Composition .................................................................................................... 11
Heat Treatment Carried Out ......................................................................................................... 13
Resultant Microstructure .............................................................................................................. 14
Group Effort ..................................................................................................................................... 17
Group Report .................................................................................................................................... 17
Bibliography ..................................................................................................................................... 18


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Part 1: General Information
Steel and its Properties
Unalloyed steels are simply called plain carbon steels. However
these are not always pure Iron-Carbon alloys. Elements such as
Silicon, Manganese, Sulphur and Phosphorus are unintentionally
included in the alloy during its production. There are certain content
limits which must be exceeded for these elements to be considered as
alloying elements, usually being; 0.35-0.5% Silicon, 0.5-0.8 %
Manganese, 0.01-0.035 % Sulphur and 0.01-0.035 % Phosphorus. Steels may contain other elements in
very small quantities. Unalloyed steels can be regarded as two component Fe-C alloys with a carbon
content of 0-2.6%. [2]
Steel is considered to be alloyed when, in addition to the basic components of Iron and Carbon, other
alloying elements are added intentionally to assure certain properties. The main aim of alloying steels is to
improve mechanical properties such as strength, ductility and toughness; to increase corrosion resistance; to
improve certain physical properties such as magnetic and electrical properties; and to improve complex
properties of technological workability such as formability, weldabilty and machinabilty. [2]
The solidification of steels occurs according to the Iron-Carbon phase diagram as shown in the
following diagram, Figure 2: The iron iron carbide phase diagram. [2]
Carbon in steels can exist in
two forms; as an interstitial solid
solution or as a metallic compound
(Fe
3
C, iron carbide). Carbon in steels
always exists in bound form since the
presence of carbon in steel as free
carbon, or graphite, always leads to
heavy defects, reducing strength and
resulting in so-called black brittleness.
[2]
Steel mechanical properties are
primarily controlled by the
corresponding Microstructure; the
proportions, properties, shape and distribution of the phases present. [2]
The phases present at room temperature of plain carbon steels, are essentially mixtures of ferrite and

Figure 1: Plain Carbon Steel Rods [1]

Figure 2: The iron iron carbide phase diagram [3]
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cementite. Ferrite is almost pure iron, and has properties of a pure metal, being soft, ductile and tough, and
having low hardness and strength. Cementite is an intermediate compound being hard and brittle. It has low
ductility and toughness. [2]
Pearlite is composed mainly of ferrite but contains platelets of cementite in a sandwich fashion. It is
harder and stronger than ferrite but considerably less brittle than cementite. [2]
Production of Steel
The story of hot metal and cold steel is fascinating from start to finish. The story begins with a blast
as rock explodes and the raw materials of steel are tossed from the earth. The rock is Taconite and the prize
inside is crude iron ore. Taconite is a variety of iron formation, an iron-bearing (> 15% iron) sedimentary
rock, in which the iron minerals are interlayered with quartz, chert, or carbonates. [4] On a world scale the
most important and commonly used ore is hematite (Fe
2
O
3
), but in some countries the starting materials are
magnetite (Fe
3
O
4
) and titan magnetite (Fe
2
TiO
4
). [5]

The first step towards steel making is to prepare molten iron. This process begins by grinding this
huge rock into powder and separating the ore with powerful magnets. Then they form and heat the ore into
marble sized pellets that will later be converted into iron. Coal is converted to coke which is used to fuel the
iron making process. This solid carbon fuel is mixed with the pellets in the blast furnace where enough
limestone is added to remove most of the impurities. The oxides are reduced with carbon from coal, through
the intermediate production of carbon monoxide. The carbon first burns in air to give carbon dioxide and
heat, which is necessary for this process. The carbon dioxide then undergoes an endothermic reaction with
more carbon to yield carbon monoxide [6]:

An exothermic process

An endothermic process
The oxide ores are then principally reduced by the carbon monoxide produced in this reaction, the
reactions involving very small enthalpy changes [6]:

In conventional iron making this reduction occurs in a blast furnace, whereas in some countries a
rotary kiln is employed for direct reduction, followed by indirect reduction in an electric melter. This
technology is used because the titanium dioxide present in the ore produces a slag which blocks
conventional blast furnaces as it has a high melting point. The molten iron produced in this way always
contains high levels of impurities making it very brittle. [7]

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The molten iron is then transported to another part of the
plant where it is now converted into steel. The steel making
process begins by dumping recycled steel scraps into the basic
oxygen furnace and adding the hot molten iron. Sparks steal the
show when high purity oxygen is blown into the mix at
supersonic speeds. Here molten iron becomes molten steel.
Afterwards the custom blends of steel are produced thus making
it the most widely used metal on the planet. Most factories can
produce over 1000 different chemistries to meet customer
demands for cutting edge value added steels. The molten steel is tapped into a ladle and moved on to the
vacuum degasser were they are made highly formable. Vacuum degassers work by creating a lower
pressure inside a vessel so air or other gaseous impurities can be removed from a substance. [9] [10]
The focus then shifts to forming and finishing which determines more of the steels characteristics.
The first step in this sequence is to position the ladle above a massive funnel which feeds a continuous
caster containing moulds that shape the steel. The molten steel which is now at 1,648 C is transferred from
the ladle to the funnel to the caster where it cools to a bright red hot solid. The shape of the mould is what
determines the shape of the semi-finished product which emerges from the caster. Usually large slabs of
steel are produced which are cut into sections as they leave the caster. [11]
From there it is on to the hot strip mill. The job here is to transform steel slabs into steel sheets
which are very important in todays world. A flow diagram showing these steps is shown below in Figure 4:
(1) Slabs are reheated to 1250 C and descaled just before running through a series of roughing stands. (2)
The roughing stands change the dimensions of the stabs making them thinner and longer. (3) The plate is
cleaned to remove mill scale in several stages during the hot rolling process. (4) Extreme forces are applied
to the rollers thus making the steel plate even thinner and longer. (5) The steel plate is then cooled and
rolled into a coil, a very different finish from the starting materials.

Figure 3: Showing the transfer of molten
iron into the oxygen furnace [8]

Figure 4: (1) Slabs are reheated to 1250 C and descaled just before running through a series of roughing stands. (2) The
roughing stands change the dimensions of the stabs making them thinner and longer. (3) The plate is cleaned to remove
mill scale in several stages during the hot rolling process. (4) Extreme forces are applied to the rollers thus making the
steel plate even thinner and longer. (5) The steel plate is then cooled and rolled into a coil, a very different finish from the
starting materials. [12]
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Most of these processes are totally untouched by human hands. These processes are controlled by
operators from a safe distance overlooking the entire process from start to finish. The coils of steel are
moved through an acid bath which cleans the surface. Some of this steel is then shipped to customers whilst
other steel coils may be intended for specific uses and thus require special finishings. Some of these special
finishings are mentioned. [13]

Coatings may be applied to make the steel resistant to corrosion.
Tinning to add that tin coat we commonly see on canned goods.
Annealing may be done to make the steel even easier to bend and form.
Tempering, to add hardness and create surface textures.
These special finishings is what makes steel so useful and so commonly used. The steel can be
shaped and adjusted to fit the clients needs by simple finishings. The entire process of steel making can be
relatively short some plants even managing steel production in under an hour.
Heat Treatment of Steel
Heat treatment is a process used to enhance the properties of a workpart. During this process, the
metal is heated to a certain temperature, held at that temperature for a required period and then the cooling
rate is controlled to effect microstructural changes in the material depending on the mechanical properties
of the specific material needed. For example, overheating steels can cause large grain growth in the
structure which leads to a poor diffusion of ferrite at the centre of the grain.
Heat treatment involves three types of processes: softening processes, hardening processes and
thermo-chemical processes, each having their own sub-processes. [14]
Annealing
Annealing involves heating the metal above its critical temperature, sustaining that temperature, then,
slowly cooling it. As a result of this process, hardness and brittleness are reduced in the microstructure,
leading to better machinability and formability, recrystallization of cold-worked metals can occur and
residual stresses from prior process are relieved. [2] [15] [14]
Normalizing
Full annealing is associated with ferrous metals. The alloy is heated into the austenite region,
followed by a slow cooling process in the furnace to produce coarse pearlite.
Normalizing, used to relieve stress in hardenable steels, is a process involving heating and soaking
cycles with faster cooling rates than full annealing. Steel is allowed to cool in air to room temperature and
this results in a stronger fine pearlite structure with a higher strength and hardness but lower ductility when
compared to full annealing. [2] [15] [14]
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Quenching
Hardening produces a Martensitic structure, where steel is heated to a temperature within the
austenite range and then quenched at an appropriate rate so as to decompose to the martensite
transformation range Ms, resulting in a martensitic structure. [2] [15] [14]
Recyclability of Steel
Metals can be recycled indefinitely without losing
their properties hence most scrap metal is recycled. Scrap
metal which typically comes from used cars is split into two
categories, ferrous metal and non-ferrous metal. Apart from
cars scrap metal also comes from cast iron, pressing steel
(domestic steel up to 6mm thick), heavy metal steel
(industrial/commercial steel which is thicker than 6 mm)
and manganese steel (very hard steel used in the mining
industry). [16] [17] [18]

As it name suggests ferrous metal is mainly derived from iron and this category is mainly composed
of steels and cast iron. Steel is the most recycled material in the world due to the fact that it is always on
demand and hence has a high market value. Also as a large number of objects are made of steel and due to
the fact that steel can be recycled quite easily it makes more sense to reuse items which are no longer useful
than to process steel by mining it from its ore (Iron). [19]
The process of recycling steel is actually 56% more cost effective that mining iron and processing it
into steel. It is estimated that about 88% of the steel produced is derived from recycled ferrous metal which
is quite high considering the ever increasing demand for steel. Furthermore by recycling 1 metric ton of
steel, one saves 1.1 metric tons of iron ore, 630 kg of coal and 55 kilograms of limestone. [20] [21] [22]

Ferrous metal can be easily separated from
other material as it is magnetic and hence can be
sorted from other metals and materials using an
electromagnet as seen in Figure 5: Electromagnet
separating ferrous material from non-ferrous material
in a scrapyard. Once the steel is separated from any
other materials such as rubber, plastics and other non-
ferrous metals it can be processed to form the new
steel. There are two main processes which use recycled steel as a raw material which are Basic Oxygen
Steelmaking (BOS) and Electric Arc Furnace (ERF) steelmaking.

Figure 5: Electromagnet separating ferrous
material from non-ferrous material in a
scrapyard

Figure 6: Electric Arc Furnace
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Basic Oxygen Steelmaking produces steel which usually contains lower amounts of residual elements
such as copper, nickel and molybdenum. Hence the steel produced is more ductile and is used in processes
where the steel has to undergo a large degree of cold work such as in the production of tin cans. The process
of basic oxygen steelmaking was already explained in detail in the production of steel from its ore and
hence shall not be discussed in this section. [23]
On the other hand in Electric Arc Furnace steelmaking the steel is first shredded into small pieces and
transferred to a furnace for smelting. As seen in Figure 6: Electric Arc Furnace the furnace consists of
circular steel vessel lined with firebrick a material which can withstand the high temperature in the
furnace. A series of graphite rods are found on the lid of the furnace and extend down into the furnace
where the scrap metal is found. Once the furnace is switched on electricity will arc between the electrodes
and the shredded steel, raising the temperature inside the oven. The smelting of steel produces harmful
fumes and particles which are removed from the furnace using a fume extraction system. Once the
temperature is high enough and steel melts completely the vessel can be tilted to pour the molten metal into
a fire proof container. This molten steel can then be transported to a steel rolling facility where the metal is
passed in between a pair of rolls to be shaped into sheets of steel. [16] [17] [22]


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Typical Uses of Steel
Steel Type Image Uses
Stainless steels
[24]
Sinks, automobile parts, valves for airplane
engines, dental tools, pots and pans, cutting
tools, marine applications, kitchen utensils,
piping, food processing equipment, surgical
equipment. [25] [26] [27]
Alloy steels
[28]
Used for drill bits, shaping and cutting
other metals, saw blades, transformers,
power generated, electric motors, auto
parts. [25] [26]
Carbon steels
[29]
Low (0.2% C) Automobile bodies,
buildings, pipes, chains, screws, nails,
gears, bolts. [26] [30]
Medium (0.3% - 0.7%) Connecting rods,
crank pins, axles, screwdrivers, rails, axles,
hammers. [26] [30]
High (0.7% - 1.5%) - table knives,
wrenches, saws, taps, chisels, axes, razors,
surgical cutlery [26] [30]
Galvanised steels
[31]
Coated with zinc for protection against
corrosion. [32]
Electroplated steels
[33]
Used for making cans and containers and
where an electric current is needed. [32]
Damascus and Wootz
steel
[34]
Used for sword blades, as it is hard,
flexible and patterned. [32]
Tool steels
[35]
Resistant to wear, used for cutting tools and
drilling equipment [25] [26]


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Part 2: The Drill Bit
The Drill Bit and its Function
A drill bit is a rotating
cylindrical tool having two cutting
edges on its working end. Drill bits
are mounted onto drilling presses or
drillers, in general, in order to drill
holes of a specific diameter.
This particular drill bit is made of high-speed steel which makes it ideal for machining at high
speeds, as the name implies. [36]

Figure 7: Standard geometry of a twist drill [36]

Part Name Part Function
Shank The area at one end of the drill that allows the drill to be held and driven. [37] There is
a slight decrease in diameter from point towards shank in the body of the drill. [38]
Neck In the transition between the twist drills knife and drill shank. Usually used as a
grinding wheel retraction empty knife slots [39]
Helix angle The angle formed by the edge of a flute and a line parallel to the drill centreline [37]
Flute A helical groove that runs up the length of the drill body. Flutes enable the evacuation
of chips from the cutting are during drilling as well as allowing the coolant and
lubricant to get down to the cutting edge. [37] [40]
Land Outer portion between two adjacent flutes. [38]
Point The cone-shaped end which does the cutting. It consists of:
A dead centre: the sharp edge at the extreme tip of the drill. It should always be the
exact center of the drill
Lips: the cutting edges of the drill
Heel: the portion of the point back from the cutting edge [40]
Rake face Flute surface just behind the cutting edge of the lips [41]
Cutting edge The edge of the bit which cuts into the work part.
Chisel edge The edge at the end of the web that connects the cutting lips is chiselled [37]
Web thickness The web is the centre part of the body that joins the lands. The thickness of the web
increases from the point to the shank. [42]
Margin A portion of the land that is not cut away to provide clearance. Margins guide the drill
in the hole and maintain the drill diameter. [37]
D
r
i
l
l

B
o
d
y

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Required Properties of the Drill Bit
A drill bit operates at high speeds and they are essentially used to drill circular holes. Naturally, in
order for it to be able to drill holes, the drill body must be of a cylindrical form The drill body must also be
able to withstand high levels of temperature due to the rapid turning and due to friction, which causes
heating, against that material which the drill bit is drilling. It must contain a high level of wear resistance
and a high level of strength and hardness, to be able to withstand friction and fracture the material upon
which it is working. Moreover it must be able to retain this hardness even when the drill bit becomes red
hot. Otherwise it would break after long periods of continuous use. The shank must be a little more ductile
in order not to fracture when it is being held firmly in place by the drilling press or driller. [43]
Why is the Drill Bit made of Steel? Advantages and Disadvantages
High speed steel is an alloy with many applications apart from drilling. Its chemical composition
provides it with properties which make it suitable for its use. The main chemicals in HSS include carbon,
tungsten, molybdenum, vanadium, chromium and cobalt, among others. [43]
The primary advantages include its:
ability to withstand heat when used at high performance (hence the name high speed steel)
high wear resistance
high retention at hardness along with red hardness when used
overall high level of toughness
When steel is treated with carbon it forms carbides which provide a platform of hardness which
increases its wear resistance. Tungsten and molybdenum build on the platform, improving overall hardness
and add retention on the hardness. Vanadium increases the retention of hardness apart from increasing high
temperature wear resistance, making the drill bit able to continue working for a longer time. Chromium
adds hardening on the inside at the material inducing strength from the inside and lastly cobalt improves
red hardness and retention of the platform. [43]
Although very useful, high speed steel has a few disadvantages. Even though HSS has a red hardness
of 650C, when heated the material becomes very brittle. Due to its high hardness level HSS is hard to
manufacture into tools and other applications. [43]




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Typical Chemical Composition
The common drill bit tool is made from high speed steel often abbreviated HSS. These are ferrous
based alloys of the type Fe-C-X, where X represents an alloying element compromising mainly of
Chromium, Tungsten, Molybdenum, and Cobalt. [44] These HSS are mostly used for cutting tools since
they are characterized by their capacity to retain high levels of hardness whilst cutting objects at very high
speeds. Usually the X component is present in an excess of about 7 % along with more than 0.60 % carbon.
[45]
High speed steels can be divided into three main groups: [46]

Those bearing a T symbol, where tungsten is the major alloying element.
HSS bearing the symbol M indicates that molybdenum is the principal alloying element.
And a group of more highly alloyed steels that is capable of attaining unusually high hardness values.
Ultra Hard High Speed Steels. Since these arent very common they wont be discussed in detail.
Our drill bit was a 4241 HSS of the T group and is thus known as T-4241 HSS. [47]
Table 1: Table showing the composition of HSS in our drill bit


Uses of the alloying elements present:
Carbon: As in all tool steels carbon is extremely important as it increases the hardenability of the
steel.
Steel Grade (T-4241)
C
h
e
m
i
c
a
l

C
o
m
p
o
s
i
t
i
o
n

i
n

w
t
%

Carbon 0.90-1.00
Silicon 0.80-1.30
Manganese 0.20-0.45
Tungsten 1.50-2.50
Molybdenum 0.50-1.20
Chromium 3.80-6.00
Vanadium 0.50-1.00
Silicon: Present in the range of 1.25 to 2.5 %, silicon is used extensively when a low cost, low
loss material is needed. Silicon is used for better permeability, lower coercive force and freedom from
aging. [48]
Manganese: Present up to about 0.35 %. Large amounts induce cracking during heat treatment.
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Above 0.4 %, Manganese promotes grain growth at high temperatures. Manganese is also added to steel
to improve hot working properties and increase strength, toughness and hardenability.
Tungsten and Molybdenum: Molybdenum and Tungsten hve similar properties They promote
red hardness and wear resistance. The steels cutting performance increases notablyas either of these
elements is increased.. Molybdenum may be used to replace tungsten at the rate of around 1wt. % for
every 1.6-2.0 wt. % of tungsten.
Chromium: Addition of 4% chromium is made to all high speed steels with the aim of promoting
depth hardening. The chromium in annealed steel is present in the form of carbide which dissolves into
the austenite during the hardening cycle and hence becomes one of the primary sources of martensite in
the quenched and tempered tool. Chromium is the absence of large quantities of retained austenite
sharply retards the rate of softening in these steels, but in itself does not produce a true secondary
hardening peak. Chromium is also added to the steel to increase resistance to oxidation.
Vanadium: Vanadium forms extremely stable carbides such as vanadium monoxide, which are
insoluble at normal hardening temperature and thus creates a very effective means of limiting grain
growth.
Table 2: Additional information on the T-4241 HSS alloy:
Density in Annealing Condition g/m 7.89
Annealing Temperature 840-860
Stress Relieving Temperature 680-700C
Quenching Temperature 1140-1170C
Quenching Cooling Medium Salt Bath under 600C, also oil or air cooling
Tempering Temperature 540C
Quenching &Tempering Rock Well Hardness 63-65.5
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Heat Treatment Carried Out
The main steps involved in this heat treatment are listed below and following them, is a detailed
explanation of the treatment:
Sub-critical annealing/stress relief (680-700C)
Ferrite to austenite transformation (840-900C)
Austenitising (1250-1290C)
Quenching (1140-1170C)
Stabilising and tempering (540C)
Tool steels are difficult to machine and therefore, after machining, high stresses would be present
in the tool. These stresses would need to be relieved to increase dimensional stability. This is done by a
sub-critical anneal in a salt bath at 680C to 700C. The steel is then cooled slowly and ground to size or
finish-machined. [14]
Care must be taken so as not to heat the steel into austenite since the steel has a low thermal
conductivity. For this reason, a heat treatment cycle is carried out as follows. The steel is preheated and
stabilized at a temperature of 500C in a salt bath. The ferrite is transformed to austenite at 840-900C. A
phase change occurs between 820C and 840C therefore a change in volume is accommodated for by
heating very slowly. Next, austenitising occurs between 1250C and 1290C so the steel is heated to this
temperature. On reaching 1100C, all the carbides would have dissolved, ensuring a maximum amount of
carbon in solution. This makes a high carbon martensite with maximum cold hardness. [14]
The steel isnt kept at this high temperature very long so as to avoid grain growth so quenching is
carried out soon after. The rate at which this is done is enough to make sure that all austenite has
transformed to martensite. A temperature of 1140-1170C is usually used. This quenching can be done in
oil but it should first be allowed to stand in air for the flash heat to disappear. [14]
At this point, some austenite is still retained and needs to be transformed therefore a sub-zero
treatment is performed. This can either be done in a refrigerator at -75C or in liquid nitrogen at -196C.
This refrigeration converts a good amount of the retained austenite to martensite and tempers the
untempered martensite. Tempering is carried out repeatedly at 540C and even then, some austenite still
remains. This austenite reduces the hardness of the high speed steel and also the stability of the tool. [14]



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Resultant Microstructure

Figure 8: Etched Sample
The microstructure of the chosen object was
revealed using optical microscopy and etching technique. 2
sections of the drill bit were chosen for microstructure
analysis, a cross section of the flute (cutting part) and a
cross section of the shank (part which attaches to driller) as
it was suspected that these areas are of a different hardness
owing to their different purpose. The pieces were cut
using a very hard saw due to the known hardness of high
speed steel. The cut samples were than mounted in a
Bakelite mould and the sample surfaces were ground with a number progressively finer abrasive paper.
The sample was then polished using a cloth and diamond abrasive to achieve a smooth surface for etching
as can be seen in Figure 8: Etched Sample. The sample was then etched with Nital for about 10 seconds
and the steel surfaces were analysed using optical microscopy. [49]
The resulting microstructures can be observed in Figure 9: Shank edge and Shank centre at 50
magnification and Figure 10: Flute centre and cutting tip at 50 magnification and 20 magnification
respectively.

Figure 9: Shank edge and Shank centre at 50 magnification

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Figure 10: Flute centre and cutting tip at 50 magnification and 20 magnification respectively

Table 3: Hardness of various regions of the drill bit

Cutting tip centre
(HRC)
Cutting tip edge
(HRC)
Shank centre
(HRC)
Shank edge
(HRC)
Micro hardness test 62.6 65.2 54.4 55.5
Macro hardness test 61.0 n/a 46.5 n/a

Figure 9: Shank edge and Shank centre at 50 magnification and Figure 10: Flute centre and
cutting tip at 50 magnification and 20 magnification respectively indicate that both the cutting part and
the shank of the drill possess a very fine microstructure. Both regions have a fine microstructure with no
grains however white regions with a completely different structure can be seen in both areas. These white
etching constituents are most probably carbides which have precipitated out during tempering of the
metal. The cutting part centre also has a larger amount of dark areas and a more needle like appearance.
The presence of the needle like structure, the precipitated carbides and the fact that the cross section at the
flute of the drill has a hardness of 61-65 HRC suggests that the cutting section of the drill bit is made up
of tempered martensite. This is desirable as this makes the cutting part hard and thus it will resist
deformation and the drill will not become dull quickly. Yet the cutting part will be tough enough so that
the bit resists from shattering or cracking when the bit gets stuck during drilling. The cutting part gets its
properties due to the fact that during tempering the martensite will decompose into ferrite and carbides
which eventually form cementite. The harder carbides are surrounded by a softer ferrite matrix which
makes the material tougher as it will become more resistant to crack propagation. [50] [51]
Upon closer inspection of the cutting tip one can observe that there probably are no coatings on the
drill bits surface. However the edge of the bit appears to be paler than the material on the inside which
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suggests that the microstructure of the material is gradually changing. This might be due to a surface
treatment of the cutting part performed on the surface of the blade to harden it. In fact the edge of the
cutting tip is marginally harder that the centre. Otherwise the cutting tip might have undergone work
hardening during sharpening or use of the drill bit. The change in microstructure is not observed in the
shank which suggests that the blade is probably hardened. The marginal difference in hardness might be
accounted to the fact that the hardness tests were not taken at the very edge of the cutting part and hence
the results obtained do not represent the actual hardness of the cutting edge. [52]

The shank also has a similar yet paler microstructure than the flute of the drill bit; furthermore the
shank is also significantly softer than the cutting part as shown in Table 3: Hardness of various regions of
the drill bit. This suggests that the microstructure of the shank is different from that of the cutting part.
However the microstructure still has white regions of cementite which suggests that the shank was also
tempered with the rest of the drill bit nonetheless there might be a different heat treatment involved. The
exact microstructure of cannot be determined easily but the lower hardness suggests that the shank could
be made of bainite which can have very similar appearance to tempered martensite. The fact that the
shank is softer is quite important as otherwise the shank would be more susceptible to shattering when the
bit is inserted into a hole while the drill is spinning. This is especially true for thinner drill bits which are
more fragile and break more easily. [53] [16]
Group 12
17 | U s e s o f S t e e l

Group Effort

Jennifer Attard 0088194 (M) 20%
Jean-Paul Formosa 0006695 (M) 20%
Graham Gilson 0171293 (M) 20%
Roberto Migneco 0323394 (M) 20%
Jocelyn Aquilina 0052594 (M) 20%
Maria Cutajar 0102294 (M) 20%

Group Report

The aim of this assignment was to investigate the use of steel and its alloys in engineering tools.
Our group, group 12 got together and discussed different possible steel tools; pistons, hacksaws,
crankshafts, and drillbits, to name a few. Having contacted the lecturer about our decision, we were
assigned a first lab session in order to observe various tests performed on tools to investigate the material
properties of the tool. A demonstration of the hardness tests was performed.
We then decided to book a second session where we brought along our own drill bit and performed
hardness tests and etching on our sample. We decided to split up the work between us and worked as pairs
on the various parts of the assignment.
After carrying out our research we compiled everything together in one whole document and proof-
read our teammates work. The work was split in such a way that everyone was given the opportunity to
research without anyone being left out.
As for the presentation, each of us where assigned a part of the project in order to prepare a few
short points about the project. Once again we met up and compiled everything together using Microsoft
PowerPoint 2010.


Group 12
18 | U s e s o f S t e e l

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